Love's Sweetest Rewards
by iloveromance
Summary: When Daphne's attempt to do something special for Niles has near disastrous results, the result is something far more wonderful than she ever dreamed. Continuation of "I'll Take Care of You" by Kristen3


_**A/N: Thanks to Kristen for writing the wonderful story "I'll Take Care of You." on which this story is based.**_

* * *

Daphne couldn't help but sing to herself as she set the table for breakfast. It was hard to believe that just twenty-four hours ago, she'd felt like death warmed over. But now that she was feeling much better, she knew that her good mood had little to do with the absence of her upset stomach and swimming head.

And the thought made her heart leap.

She had to admit that she'd felt a bit guilty calling Dr. Crane when she was so sick, but she couldn't believe how quickly he'd arrived, literally dropping everything to come to her aid. It was like a scene from one of her romance novels.

In real life she doubted any man would go to so much trouble. Then again, no one was as sweet and kind as Dr. Crane.

Once more the thought of him warmed her heart, and suddenly she found that she missed his kindness and his company. She'd thanked him profusely last night, and the kisses they shared still lingered in her mind.

It wasn't like her to be so bold, especially when it came to matters of the heart. But when he'd told her that he loved her, she knew that his words were nothing but sincere.

His admission stunned her, and she wondered how long he'd been keeping his feelings to himself. But now she realized that it didn't matter.

She thought back to how worried he'd looked when he arrived at the condo, and he'd rushed to her side almost immediately, doing his best to take care of her.

That morning when she'd awoken, she feared that her illness would last for a long time. It would never do to be so sick when she had obligations such as taking care of Mr. Crane. She was sure that the elder Dr. Crane would be furious if he knew that she had neglected her duties.

But his brother understood. It seemed that it had always been that way. Niles had always been so patient, thoughtful and kind. She loved Frasier dearly but he was nothing like his sweet and caring younger brother. There must be something she could do to repay him. Not only had he taken such wonderful care of her, but he'd even managed to take Eddie for a walk; something she knew that he didn't enjoy.

Although she knew he loved his father's Jack Russell Terrier, he was clearly uncomfortable around animals; even those with whom he was closest to.

Suddenly she had an idea.

It was hardly original and perhaps even a bit silly, but given the circumstances it was the best she could do.

"So... Mr. Crane..." She said as causally as possible. "Do you have any plans for this afternoon?"

"Yeah! To sit in my chair and watch the game! Preferably with no interruptions!"

She sighed with disappointment. She should have known this wouldn't go according to plan. If Mr. Crane was there yelling at the television while the Sonics missed baskets or the Mariners missed baseballs that flew right at their bats, it would surely spell disaster.

Although he seemed grateful that Niles had taken the time to come over and care for her, he had no idea about the kisses that they shared. And frankly she wasn't sure she wanted him to know.

"You know, Mr. Crane... Wouldn't it be more comfortable to watch the game at Duke's? A nice cold beer? All your friends there?"

"Nah, I'd rather sit right here. Some of those guys are nuts."  
"But surely you'd find their company better than mine. If you stay here, you might be forced to watch one of me romantic movies, and I know you'd hate that!"

He stared at her suspiciously. "What the hell are you trying to do, get rid of me?"  
She shrugged as the heat rose in her cheeks. "Well I was hoping to have a few of me girlfriends over for an afternoon of watching movies. It is me day off and all and it's been so long since we've all gotten together-." She lied. "I know how Dr. Crane frowns upon that sort of thing and since he's out of town-."

"Oh, all right, fine! I'll go to Duke's!" He said, grimacing at the food she put on the table. Normally she'd be offended by such actions, but today she was grateful to have found a way to get him out of the condo, even if she'd had to lie to him. It wasn't right, of course, but she couldn't have him there when she presented Niles with his surprise.

"How's your breakfast?" She asked, knowing full well what the answer would be.

"Fine." He said. "Have you seen the paper?"

Proudly she lifted it from the coffee table and handed it to him. "Here you are. Interested in the news, are you?"

"Are you all right, Daphne? You know I read the paper every morning! What's gotten into you?"

Her face flushed once more as she thought of the man who'd taken such good care of her last night.

"Nothing, I just... Thought you'd like to spend a little time with your buddies. You know you won't get that chance once Dr. Crane comes back."

He looked at her thoughtfully. "You're right, Daphne. I think I'll take Eddie for a walk after breakfast and then go take a nap for a while. Gotta rest up for the big game."

The relief she felt was almost immeasurable and she hugged him on impulse.

"What was that for?" He asked, eying her suspiciously.

"Just because." She replied.

To her amazement, he smiled. "Thanks, Daph."

Quickly he finished his breakfast and rose from his chair. "Well, I'm going to take Eddie for a walk and then take a short nap before I head over to Duke's."

Daphne smiled in spite of herself. "I think that's a wonderful idea."

When she was sure that Martin was gone, she cleared the breakfast dishes and washed them in record time. She had to act fast, but not so fast as to make Martin any more suspicious than he already was.

And once she had the kitchen all to herself, she began pouring through a stack of cookbooks. There must be something here that...

She gasped in delight as her eyes landed on the picture before her. It was the perfect thing to say thank you with. And she could hardly wait to get started on it.

The ingredients lay out before her and she began carefully preparing the dessert according to the directions. She didn't want anything to mess this up. It had to be absolutely perfect. Soon the condo was filled with the heavenly aroma; one that sent Martin wandering into the kitchen much sooner than she anticipated.

"Hey, something sure smells good!"

"What about your game? I thought you were going to Duke's!" She said, a little too forcefully.

"I am..." He said, raising his eyebrows. "But I was going to wait a little while. Maybe watch some TV before I go."

"Now what sense does that make? They've got much bigger and better TV's at Duke's than we have here. Go on! I'm sure they're wondering where you are!"

"All right, fine! But it's not like I haven't met your girlfriends before!" He said, hobbling to grab his coat. "Hey! Maybe there's a Monster Truck Rally on! Duke loves those! I think there might be one on right before the Mariners have their first pitch! I was reading about it in TV Guide just last night! Here, let me look-."

"NO!" She yelled when he circled around to return to his chair. "I-I mean... Why do that when you can find out for yourself when you get there? You know how those bloody TV Guides are, always giving the wrong information. Why, just the other day I settled meself with a cup of tea on the sofa all prepared to watch _Dirty Dancing_ and there was a bloody baseball game on!"

"Imagine that." Martin said without any emotion at all. "All right. I don't know what in the hell is going on here, but I guess I should go to Duke's."

Daphne laughed nervously. "Just a few of me girlfriends coming over, that's all." She lied again.

"Right. Well, I'll be back later, but don't wait up. Once I get a few beers in me, and Duke breaks out the poker chips, it could be hours before I return."

"That's fine." She said, kissing his cheek. "Have a good time, Mr. Crane. I'll take good care of Eddie while you're gone."

He gave her one last suspicious glance before he walked out the door and when he was gone, she sighed with relief. Finally she could work on her creation in peace.

When she had all the ingredients in a bowl and ready to put in the oven, she read the directions carefully one more time. It needed to go into the oven for 45 minutes.

That would give her plenty of time to curl up with a good movie. Lord knows she'd wanted to do this yesterday.

Eagerly she popped in the DVD of _Dirty Dancing_ and sighed at the familiar opening credits. She could never get enough of this movie no matter how much she tried. As she watched Patrick Swayze's attempts to turn Jennifer Grey into a spectacular dancer, her mind began to wander and she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

The ringing doorbell startled her and she slowly opened her eyes. For a moment she'd forgotten where she was and she glanced at the television dismayed to find that the movie had ended and the credits were now rolling up the screen.

When the doorbell rang again she rose from the sofa and went to answer it. And her heart melted at the sight.

"Dr. Crane..."

"Hello Daphne. I hope you don't mind my coming over unexpected-."

"What?"

He sniffed the air and she blushed, prepared to hear the compliment about her perfume; the one she never tired of hearing. He was always so thoughtful.

"Is something burning?"

Suddenly an overpowering odor wafted under her nose and her heart began to race.

"Bloody hell!"

"Daphne-."

She raced to the kitchen and opened the oven as the black smoke surrounded her. Seconds later, the fire alarm went off; it's ear-piercing sound startling them both.

"Hang on Daphne, I'll get it!" Niles said. He removed his handkerchief and put it over his mouth as he ran into the kitchen. With the broom in hand, he beat the end of it against the ceiling until the blaring alarm stopped. And when Daphne began to cough violently, he grabbed a kitchen towel and held it over her mouth as he guided her out of the kitchen.

"Come on!"

She stared at the black puff of smoke pouring from the kitchen. "But-."

"It's all right; just... open the balcony door! I'll get these other windows."

She raced to the balcony, taking a moment to glance at the Seattle skyline. It was so beautiful and now it was going to be clouded with black smoke. The second she opened the door, the black curling smoke seemed to find its way across the living room and trailed out the door.

When she continued to cough, Niles was beside her in an instant, guiding her onto the balcony through the adjacent door. The fresh air was like a godsend, as they both coughed the air out of their lungs and he rubbed her back in an attempt to help her.

"Just let it out, that's it... Everything's fine now. Thank God I got here when I did. I don't know what I would have done if..."

He continued to talk and were it not for the remorse she was feeling, his sweet words would have warmed her heart.

"I-I have to get in there!" She said, pushing past him against his protests.  
"Daphne-."

She ran into the kitchen, somewhat relieved to find that the smoke had cleared. But nothing could have prepared her for what she found in its place. Carefully she peered into the oven and removed the cookie sheet with her pot holder, sitting it on the island. And when she realized what she had done, the tears began to fall relentlessly and she was sobbing into her hands.

"Daphne are you-What's wrong?"

As he'd done when she was sick, he rushed to her side and put his arms around her.

"What's wrong?"

She stared at the charred remains of her special surprise and cried even harder. "Oh,

Dr. Crane... I'm so sorry..."

"Daphne, no need to be sorry. Kitchen fires can happen to anyone. I just thank God you're okay."

"No... I mean this is my fault! I started this!"

He sighed deeply, brushing the damp hair from her tear streaked face. "What happened?"

"Oh, Dr. Crane I was so grateful to you yesterday for taking such good care of me and I wanted to do something special for you! So I went through the bloody cookbook and even kicked your father out of the house!"

"Where is Dad?"

"At Duke's. I convinced him to go there early and watch the game. But I did that so that I could make this chocolate soufflé for you! And what happens? I go and ruin it! I'm a bloody idiot! I must have fallen asleep while I was watchin me movie! Oh God, what if-."

He sighed and took her into his arms. "It's all right, Daphne. It was just an accident. And you're not an idiot, so please don't ever say that!"

"But..."

When she cried harder, he held her even closer and rubbed her back. "I know it's frightening. Just... let it out. I'm here... It's all right."

"I'm so sorry!"

He kissed her cheek and held her while she cried, never once commenting on the charred creation that sat in the middle of the island. When she was calm, she slowly drew back and stared at the sight in front of her.

"I suppose I should just toss this. It's no good to anyone now. Oh God and to think that I spent all morning making this for you!"

He stared at the blackened desert for a moment. "Actually, Daphne... I have a better idea."

She watched in confusion as he rummaged through the cabinets until he found a small plate. Carefully he removed the souffle, and with a knife, managed to cut around the burned edges. Amazingly the middle was still intact, and almost instantaneously the heavenly aroma of chocolate rose toward her.

It was a miracle; a dream come true.

He found the powdered sugar and then opened the refrigerator in search of something else. Within seconds he laid a container of strawberries on the counter along with a bottle of chocolate syrup. "Now..." he said, carefully moving the soufflé to a larger plate. "This will only take a second."

She watched as he sprinkled the chocolate creation with powdered sugar and sliced some strawberries which he added after pouring a river of chocolate on top.

"Is this what you had in mind?"

She gasped at the sight, unable to believe that he had gone to so much trouble.

"Dr Crane, I..."

"I think we should enjoy this at the table, don't you?"

"I-."

Before she could protest, he was setting two places. And then he went to the refrigerator and found a bottle of wine.

"I suppose Frasier wouldn't mind if we indulged a bit." He poured two glasses and then found a candle which he placed on the table, igniting it before dimming the overhead lights.

"Perfect. After you, my sweet."

"Dr. Crane..."

As he raised his glass to toast her, she stared at him in disbelief. "Dr. Crane... why are you doing all of this?"

"I'm just trying to help you out, Daphne. I mean, this is what you had in mind, isn't it? Surely you weren't planning on serving such a beautiful desert without the proper setting."

"I..."

"This is nicest thing you could have ever done for me. I'm not sure what I did to deserve this but it's truly wonderful. Thank you so much."  
She could only stare at him in disbelief. Surely he was kidding. "H-how can you say that? I made a mess of the kitchen and I nearly burned the place down in the process! I'm so sorry, Dr. Crane!"

He moved his chair closer to hers and kissed her on the lips. "I know it was frightening, and ordinarily I would chastise someone who had done something like this. But knowing that you cared enough to do all of this for me... It just makes me love you more, Daphne."

"Oh Niles..."

He kissed her deeply then, and she found that she didn't want to stop. But when she did, she only drew back for a second before kissing him again.

"I love you, Daphne."

She swallowed hard, for there was only one thing to say. "I love you too...Niles."

"What do you say after we finish this wonderful desert that we curl up on the couch and watch _Dirty Dancing_?"

Her eyes widened in surprise. "Really?"

He took her hand and kissed it. "Yes, I really mean that. So what do you say?"

"I'd love to."

And as they enjoyed their desert, perfect or not, there never was a sweeter moment. For she had found the world's sweetest man.

**THE END**


End file.
